Valve: no ‘killer app’ exclusives for SteamOS

Valve looks set to maintain its ‘good guy of the gaming world’ reputation even as it attempts to launch its own hardware and operating system. The company told IGN that SteamOS, which’ll soon be competing with Windows PCs and home consoles, will not feature big name exclusive titles: “you won’t see an exclusive killer app on SteamOS from us; we’re not going to be doing that kind of thing.”

Some had speculated that Valve would release Half-Life 3 on SteamOS only, as a way to encourage gamers to adopt the platform, but that seems highly unlikely in the wake of this announcement. Valve, of course, has never even confirmed that the game is in development. [Source: IGN]

Philips Hue smart lighting gets new spotlight bulb

Philips has extended its range of Hue smart lights with the GU10, a white light capable of screwing into spotlight and accent light fittings. Like other Hue products, it’s controllable from a smartphone app. Philips has also introduced a new Hue feature called StoryLight, which works with selected Disney e-books to deliver lighting effects tailored to the particular page of a story you’re currently reading.

The new GU10 Hue lights are available in a £180 introduction pack (three lights and everything you need to set up smart control over them), and individually for £50 a pop. You can buy them from Apple stores, or at Apple’s UK site.

Tesco to roll out Minority Report-style ‘smart ads’

Tesco’s petrol stations will soon boast a somewhat Orwellian addition: adverts that watch you back. The UK’s largest retailer has announced plans to introduce ‘smart’ advertising displays that, thanks to a built-in camera, can recognise a viewer’s general age and gender and show them tailored 10-second ads. It might seem scary, but given that Google, Amazon and Facebook are already doing the same – albeit online – based on the stacks of information they’ve gleaned from your Internet activity, Tesco’s actions are simply a logical progression of real-world advertising. [Source: Quartz]

Oregon Scientific enters the fitness band fray

Oregon Scientific, known best for its weather stations and atomic clocks, has just entered the fitness band market with the Ssmart Dynamo (no, that’s no a typo). Resembling the Fitbit or Nike+ FuelBand, the Dynamo is designed to be worn 24/7 and tracks steps taken, distance travelled, sleep time and calories burned. It communicates with iPhone 4S and later, and Android 4.3 devices (plus the Samsung Galaxy S4), via Bluetooth, and can store up to 14 days of data at once. You can pick one up now from the Oregon website, priced at £85.